Report on the Evolution of Human Rights in Canada

"How have
Canadians’ ideas of human rights evolved over time? Change begins when
someone believes that they are being treated unfairly, and then decides
to take action. The following report traces the emergence of human
rights as the primary language for social change in Canada. It documents
the rights revolution in Canada, and how it transformed social
movements, politics, law, and foreign policy. Canadians began to engage
with the principles of human rights long before the 1970s, but it was
only in this period when human rights became pervasive and systemic.
Canadians established one of the most sophisticated human rights legal
regimes in the world; largely abandoned the principle of Parliamentary
supremacy; produced a unique human rights movement; and became one of
the first countries to advance human rights as a cornerstone of
international politics."

"The
focus in this report is on social movements, political debates
surrounding the constitution, human rights law, and foreign policy as
evidence of Canadians’ evolving human rights ideals. Sections two
through four document the rights revolution from the 1940s to the 1970s,
with a focus on the shift from civil liberties to human rights. The
foundation for how Canadians define human rights today was established
in the 1970s. Sections five and six address the legacy of the rights
revolution, and how Canadians’ ideas of rights have continued to evolve
even when the law and politics have remained static. In particular,
these sections draw on surveys of the media, opinion polls, and social
movements to document emerging rights claims. A central theme in the
report is that human rights are always contested, but human rights also
contain an inner logic that invariably leads to new rights claims that
build upon existing recognized rights."

The Weekly Checklist includes a listing of titles made available by the Parliament of Canada, federal departments, and Statistics Canada to the
Depository Services Program for distribution to a network of Depository
Libraries in Canada and abroad.

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